Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
“Thank fucking god,” Eliza says, throwing the door open. She has Juliet in her arms, but she took her onesie off. It takes only a second to realize that something is wrong. I’ve never heard that cry before. Juliet isn’t hungry or in need of a diaper change. Something is wrong.
Eliza’s eyes round with concern as she looks from me to my baby.
“She’s burning up.”
Chapter
Three
“What?” I ask even though I heard Eliza clearly. Lucas speeds forward and Betty, who’s standing by the staircase, gasps. Technically, I still own this house and any vampire who I invited in can still enter until I revoke their invitation. Just being associated with me puts Betty at risk so letting Eliza and Lucas enter at will could come in handy. Revoking their invitation wouldn’t be a good idea.
Lucas takes Juliet from Eliza and holds her against him, bending his head down so the cool skin from his cheek presses against her forehead. She’s wailing and the sound of her cries breaks my heart.
“The spell,” I stammer, my throat feeling like it’s closing up. “It must have…have…” I can’t finish my sentence. I’m still feeling a bit off from it and I’m an adult. Was it too much for her little body to take?
“The hospital,” Betty stammers, looking down at her phone in her hand. “Should I call?”
“No. She’s not fully human. I need to take her to the Covenstead.” I turn, forgetting that Kristy isn’t behind me. “I…I…fuck.” I look back at Lucas, tears in my eyes, and reach for my baby. It’s been so long since Lucas dealt with any sort of human sickness. When I was infected by Pestilence, Lucas almost came undone. He didn’t know what to do and was going to turn me before he let me die.
“She should nurse,” Lucas tells me, relenting and letting me take our baby from his arms. “Keeping her hydrated is important.”
“Right,” I say with a nod. He read all the baby books while I was busy sharpening my weapons and prepping potions and spell bottles. “Kristy. I need…” I trail off, fumbling with my shirt. Juliet turns her head in, rooting against me between cries.
“I’ll call her,” Betty says and Eliza steps forward, putting her hand on my shoulder and gently urging me into the living room. We left most of my furniture and it’s almost weird being back in my old house. If I wasn’t so panicked, sitting here might be a little emotional. I’ve always loved historic homes, and the big white house in the woods was always a goal for me. A goal that was unrealistic and out of reach at my current salary, but this little brick house was perfect, even though it wasn’t.
There was water in the basement, lead paint throughout, and a couple of rowdy spirits. I got rid of the water and the lead paint first, and then somewhat reluctantly helped the spirits cross over. They were endearingly annoying and helped this house feel like a home for a while. I painstakingly worked on one room at a time, renovating what I could afford over years until it was perfect in my eyes.
I’m damn proud of it and glad Lucas suggested renting it out instead of selling. This house feels like a little part of me, and it worked out perfectly having it ready to rent when Betty needed a safe and affordable place to live.
“Can you heal her?” Lucas asks, sitting next to me on the living room couch. He puts one hand on Juliet and leans in, brows furrowed.
“I don’t know how,” I remind him. I’ve only been able to heal myself and right now I feel fucking selfish for that. I couldn’t heal Abby when she was dying in front of me. I couldn’t heal Easton as the life faded from him. “I don’t even know what’s wrong.” Tears fill my eyes and I position Juliet to my breast, holding my breath as I wait for her to latch. She does almost instantly and starts to nurse for a few seconds, just long enough for the milk to let down. And then she starts crying again. Milk drips onto her face and I try to get her to nurse again, desperation making my hands shake. I try again and it makes it worse.
New moms don’t get enough fucking credit.
“My love,” Lucas says, somehow able to hold it together. “Breathe.”
Inhaling, I hold my breath for a few seconds and then let it out. Finally, Juliet latches and starts nursing. Neither of us say anything as we watch, wanting to make sure she gets at least a little bit of milk.
“When did she spike a fever?” Lucas asks Eliza.
“I noticed as soon as we got here. She wasn’t hot before. She was normal baby-temperature,” she tells us. “What the hell is going on?”